ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · field · clip · chair · stock · season · lash · spell

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. cell — in biology
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — in sport
  6. clip — a video
  7. clip — to cut
  8. field — farmland
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. clip — for paper
  11. stock — goods
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. spell — letters
  15. cell — a phone
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. field — for sport
  18. field — a subject
  19. spell — a short time
  20. chair — a leader
  21. spell — magic
  22. stock — shares
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. chair — to sit on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com